ANDY HALLIDAY is determined to prove his worth at Ibrox for a second time after being given a Rangers reprieve by Graeme Murty.

The midfielder was deemed surplus to requirements by former boss Pedro Caixinha and joined Gabala on loan in the summer.

But the departure of the Portuguese and appointment of Murty has opened the door for Halliday to return to his boyhood heroes.

He said: “I was certainly hoping that there would have been a chance to come back and thankfully I got the call from Mark Allen and there was the opportunity to do that.

“I had spoken to the gaffer quite a lot since I was there and wished him all the best. He has given me the opportunity to come back and I am very thankful to him.

“It is up to me to try and repay him. I am trying my best to get in the squad and help the team.

“I don’t think I have ever taken it for granted that I am here and I am fortunate. A lot of young boys growing up have dreamt of being here and I have the chance to do so.

“It seems a second chance because, under the previous manager, my future wasn’t at Rangers anymore.

“It is a second chance to come back and play football and the situation I am in now is just to get fit, fit into the squad as much as I can.

“I had a groin injury which was actually at the time I knew there was a chance of coming back here. That worried me a bit but it got to the stage that I had to look after myself and make sure my groin was right coming into January, and Gabala knew that as well.”

Halliday was an integral part of the side that won the Championship two seasons ago but he quickly fell down the pecking order when Caixinha replaced Mark Warburton as boss.

The 26-year-old made just a handful of appearances in Azerbaijan but will now look to play a key role for the Light Blues in the second half of the campaign.

Halliday said: “I never wanted to leave Rangers in the first place but the circumstances at the time were that I couldn’t stay and he would probably make it very difficult for me to stay.

“My hope was just to go out and play games. I can look back and say I made the decision for the right reasons.

“The team were in the Europa League at the time, they made it to the group stages last year so it was a chance for myself.

“I have never played in Europe before and I was hoping to do so for Rangers. I managed to get a few games. That is why I made the decision but unfortunately it didn’t work out.”